The political hearts and minds of America’s youngest voting-age generation, Gen Z, remain wide open. America’s 18- to 24-year-olds are not particularly partisan, and numerous surveys reveal a deep disconnect between Gen Z students and both major political parties. Most recently, College Pulse found that most Gen Z college students do not see themselves as Democrats or Republicans. Today, 34 percent of college students identify as strong or weak Democrats while 11 percent claim to be strong or weak Republicans, leaving the majority (54 percent) identifying as independents — those who say they still lean toward a party, or something else entirely.

In recent years, the Republican Party and Donald
Trump have alienated many college students. Still, most of these students have
not migrated to the Democratic Party. In fact, most students dislike both
parties: Only 10 percent think that the Republican Party is moving in the right
direction and just 18 percent say the same is true of the Democrats. There is a
real disconnect between the political elites and this up-and-coming generation
which could lead to continued electoral instability and civic decline and
political apathy among our nation’s youngest adult generation.

So, this raises the question: What issue would
deeply connect with this growing but politically homeless generation?

New data from AEI’s Survey Center on American Life presents a strong possible answer: Gen Z needs to be convinced that its own upward mobility is still possible and that most people can get ahead if they are willing to work hard — a key aspect of the American Dream.

Today, an overwhelming majority of Americans — 68 percent — agree with the statement that most people who want to get ahead can make it if they’re willing to work hard, while a minority (31 percent) of Americans say that hard work and determination are no guarantee of success for most people. The positive sentiments toward hard work have not changed much over time. In 2016, 67 percent of Americans believed in upward mobility.

While most Americans today believe in upward
mobility, there is a stark generational divide. Today, just 54 percent of Gen Z
Americans think that most people can get ahead if they work hard compared to 44
percent who believe hard work and determination are no guarantee of success for
most people. These numbers stand in bold contrast when compared to the
perspectives of older generations. Three-quarters (73 percent) of Boomers and
80 percent of the Silent Generation believe in hard work and upward mobility. Almost
three-quarters of Gen Z’s parents — Gen X — (71 percent) maintain that hard
work and determination can lead to success for most people.

Of course, generations come of age at vastly different moments in time. Gen Z is coming of age in a time of significant collegiate debt, political polarization and instability, and mounting inflation. In contrast, members of the Silent Generation are very well off today and its members, born between 1928 and 1945, benefitted from having a new “booming” economy ready to join out of school, leading one commentator to note that in the economic lives of Silents, “this age location has been very good to them — and given them a lifetime ride on the up-escalator coming off the American High.”

Moreover, when asked about the most important
local problem, Gen Zers regularly cite issues that directly impact upward
mobility. Nineteen percent of Zers point to something related to economic life — 8 percent say high taxes and 11 percent say
too few jobs — as being the most
important problems in their communities. Sixteen percent reference poverty and
homelessness, and another 3 percent say lack of funding for education, which is
often considered a steppingstone for upward mobility and jobs. Taking these
numbers together, four in ten Gen Zers cite economic concerns which impact
mobility as the most important local issues in their communities. Gen Zers also express concern over topics that regularly surface in
national polls such as the environment (3 percent) and government corruption (3
percent), but when one’s immediate locale comes into focus, Gen Z is focused on
the economy.

The growing cohort of Americans who make up Gen Z
is not as partisan as people think. They
have a strong bias against the extreme positions currently plaguing the
Republican Party, but they are not solid Democrats either. America’s youngest
generation is in play, and whichever party is able to connect with them will have an edge in future elections. New data
provides an unambiguous approach for whichever party seizes it: Do not focus on
polarizing social issues. Instead, create a platform that helps Gen Z climb the
mobility ladder. This agenda works for either party, as there are numerous
paths that can be taken to help Gen Zers embrace the very unique American idea
that hard work can lead to advancement.

Samuel J. Abrams is a professor of politics at Sarah Lawrence College and a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.

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